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2015ANNUAL REPORTU. S. C H A M B E R O F C O MMERC E F OU N DAT I O N

INTRODUCTIONMORE THAN 2.5 MILLION SERVICE MEMBERS HAVEWORN THE UNIFORM SINCE 9/11, WITH THEIRFAMILIES AND LOVED ONES BY THEIR SIDES. OURNATION OWES THEM A GREAT DEBT OF GRATITUDEFOR THEIR COMMITMENT AND SERVICE.Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) is honored to serve them as theysearch for meaningful careers throughout the United States.Launched in 2011 and growing exponentially every day, HOH hasaccomplished things that we would not have dreamed possible five yearsago. By the end of 2015, we had held 960 hiring events in the UnitedStates and around the world, and from those events alone we have seen morethan 28,000 veterans and military spouses hired. Beyond that number ofconfirmed hires, we have facilitated hundreds of thousands of other meaningfulconnections between employers and job seekers, and in 2016 we look tocapitalize on our progress and add to our many successes.Of course, these accomplishments would not have been possible without the strongrelationships that we have forged in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors or thegenerous support of our partners and sponsors across this military hiring community.Our Veteran Employment Advisory Council (VEAC), Military Spouse Employment AdvisoryCouncil (MSEAC), and Wounded Veteran and Caregiver Advisory Council (WVCEAC) havecontinued to lead the way in their respective fields to ensure that the unique challenges facedby the populations we serve are addressed, and that military families and veteran job seekersare able to find meaningful employment in a 21st century workforce.2015 was a time of tremendous growth in the veteran and military family employment space,and as this complex landscape continues to change, we are becoming increasingly strategicin our approach and efforts. While it’s important to reflect on and celebrate our successes,we are also moving forward with renewed energy and drive to serve those who sacrifice somuch for our country.Our accomplishments in 2015 were many, yet there is much more to come for our program aswe lean forward and carry out another fantastic year in 2016.ERIC EVERS OLEVice President, U.S. Chamber of CommercePresident, Hiring Our HeroesHOH 20 15 A NNUA L RE P ORT1

2015OVERVIEWOver the last year, the nation saw record lows for the overall veteran unemployment rateas the private sector truly stepped up its hiring efforts for these demographics, yet at thesame time, key segments of the military family population still face challenging rates andstruggle to make a smooth transition into the civilian workforce. Post-9/11 veterans under theage of 25, for example, face an unemployment rate of 13%; military spouses, 25%.These challenges often stem from lack of preparation, inability to translate key skills frommilitary experience into language hiring managers understand, gaps in employment forspouses and insufficient knowledge among2015 WAS A TIME OFTREMENDOUS GROWTHFOR THE VETERAN ANDMILITARY COMMUNITYEMPLOYMENT LANDSCAPE.employers of the value veterans and militaryspouses bring to the table.Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) worked tirelesslythroughout 2015 to help veterans and militaryspouses chart a pathway to employmentsuccess and economic prosperity throughhiring events, transition summits on militaryinstallations, programs that connect job seekersand employers across the country, initiatives focused on specific populations within the militarycommunity, and a robust array of online digital tools. As we continue to become more strategicin the ways that we assist job seekers in navigating the complex sea of goodwill available tothem, our focus is to ensure that they start the job search process far enough in advance to notonly find a job, but to find the right job for them.We know that the employment space in which we operate is constantly changing, and morechallenges lie ahead, but with our committed strategic partners and many new tools andprograms at military job seekers’ disposal, we are ready to meet the needs of this incrediblygifted talent pool and help them transition successfully into today’s workforce.2HOH 2 0 15 A N NUAL R EP ORTOur focus is to ensure thatjob seekers start thejob search process far enoughin advance to not only find a job,but to find the right jobfor them.

In 2015, HOH held 95 hiring eventsof different sizes and scope acrossthe country, as well as inItaly and Japan.EVENTSI95n 2015, HOH held 95 hiring events of different sizes and scope across thecountry, as well as in Italy and Japan.The program built upon the lessons learned in 2014, continuing our traditional hiringevents in cities across America, and expanding our programs on military installationsand those hosted in concert with professional sports teams.HOSTED95HIRING EVENTSHOH visited 17 military installations, connecting with 12,486 servicemembers and spouses from Fort Benning, Georgia, to SchofieldBarracks, Hawaii. We also brought American employers overseasto the men and women stationed in Japan and Italy, who often facethe most challenges in finding post-service employment while searching fromthousands of miles away.Our partnerships with the U.S. Department of Labor, the Small BusinessAdministration, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Army’s Soldierfor Life program, and other transition-focused entities highlight resourcesavailable once the transition from active duty to veteran is complete. HOH alsobegan partnering with industry leaders such as FASTPORT and Microsoft topresent overviews of industry-specific breakout sessions at these events forservice members looking to break into emerging markets.To engage the community and military families, wepartnered with 17 professional hockey, basketball, andbaseball teams to host events at their home venuesand provided tickets to job seekers at the event tocatch a game that night. Overall, nearly 3,700 jobseekers connected with nearly 1,000 employers atthese events.We continued with our brick and mortar traditionalhiring events as well, pairing up nearly 11,000 jobseekers with 3,242 employers. Importantly, thoseevents generated 1,508 firm offers. Our traditionalhiring fairs count on our local partners, such asEmployer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR),state workforce agencies, local Veterans Affairs offices,PAIRED29,252JOB SEEKERSWITH6,278EMPLOYERSRESULTING IN3,619FIRM OFFERSthe American Legion, and local chambers of commerce,to ensure that the employers and opportunities available reflect the skills andtalents of the local military community.HOH 20 15 A NNUA L RE P ORT5

2,300MILITARY SPOUSE PROGRAMCapitalizing on the strength of the military spouse programand its connections across the country, HOH made greatstrides through both targeted and strategic approaches toimpact the lives of military spousesMET WITH2,300MILITARY SPOUSE JOB SEEKERSseeking meaningful employment.The military spouse team interactedwith more than 2,300 military spousejob seekers in 2015, hosting spousespecific networking receptions andIN16CITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATEShiring fairs in 16 cities across theUnited States. In addition, the teamfacilitated networking receptionsfor employers and job seekers atHOH’s transition summits, where theprogram also hosted spouse-specific workshops. As a result, theprogram engaged spouses and employers on three continents.In November 2015, the military spouse program hosted its firstnetworking reception at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle,Pennsylvania. This schoolhouse reception was the first in a series ofevents that prepare military spouses for employment at their nextduty station, while placing the mission of HOH in front of the futureleaders of the military.HOH madegreat strides throughboth targeted andstrategic approachesto impact the livesof military spouses seekingmeaningful employment.The HOH Military Spouse network on LinkedIn has grown to morethan 4,560 members, with the total increasing daily. In 2015, theMilitary Spouse Employment AdvisoryCouncil (MSEAC) members wereinvited to take over the LinkedIngroup for a week to directly interactwith the community of military4,560HOH/LINKEDIN SPOUSEEMPLOYMENT NETWORK MEMBERSspouse members.As we move forward, we continue to refine the military spouseprogram to fit the changing needs of the active duty andtransitioning military spouse community.HOH 20 15 A NNUA L RE P ORT7

BUSINESS AND STATE ENGAGEMENTThe Business and State Engagement (BSE) team continues to advance employer strategiesfor hiring and empowering veterans and military spouses. This includes upgrades to theEmployer Roadmap, which was originally produced and released in 2014 through thegenerous support of USAA.Employer Roadmap 2.0 launched at the Veteran Jobs Mission Coalition meeting in October.Alongside visual and creative enhancements, upgrades to the Roadmap were put in place tobetter position employers to attract transitioning service members and veterans. The CareerSkills Guide highlights programs available to transitioning service members seeking applicabletraining for private sector employment, or looking to earn credentials to help them bridge thegap from military service to civilian employment. The Military-Friendly Job Description Builderis a tutorial to guide employers on writing job descriptions that will further brand their companyas military and veteran friendly.Dialogue throughout the year continued to focus on industry-specific employment opportunitiesfor job seekers. The first industry roundtable was held in March with assistance from FASTPORTand the American Trucking Associations (ATA). Representatives from 25 private truckingcompanies attended this event at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, enabling partners — thedepartments of Defense, Labor, and Veterans Affairs — to share their views on service membersand veterans transitioning into the trucking industry. The conversation encouraged sharing bestpractices among companies such as FedEx Freight, JB Hunt, and YRC. Building on the successof the roundtable on veteran trucking, future industry- and population-specific roundtables areplanned, particularly as additional industry tracks are added to the Fast Track digital platform.HOH WELCOMED THE SMALLBUSINESS ADMINISTRATIONTO OUR GROWING LIST OFNATIONAL PARTNERS IN2015, AND WE CONTINUE TOENHANCE OUR NETWORK ASTHE PROGRAM EXPANDS.Team BSE met with numerous employers inone-on-one strategy sessions and shared resourcesand advice with chambers of commerce fromTampa to San Diego. The Chamber of Valor programcontinues to recognize the extraordinary work ofthose chambers of commerce that go above andbeyond to support the mission of HOH.2016 efforts focus on the development of statebased resources, flexible and part-time employmentopportunities for student veterans through theHigher Veterans initiative, and growing programsfor veteran entrepreneurs and veteran- and militaryspouse-owned small businesses. Our partnership with the Coalition for Veteran Owned Business(CVOB) was highlighted in June at the Chamber’s annual America’s Small Business Summit, andthe team traveled to Dallas in the fall to join the CVOB team for its first annual meeting at theGeorge W. Bush Institute.8HOH 2 0 15 A N NUAL R EP ORTHOH focused onindustry-specificpathways to creatingemployment opportunitiesfor job seekers.